The Joys of Life
by Mrs Kaim Argonar
Summary: Why not put the cast of LO back in high school? I just did. READ AND REVIEW!
1. First Day

**The Joys of Life**

**Well since I'm currently going through an LO phase. An idea sparked in my head. Let's put the cast of LO back in school, upper school that is (High School to everyone else, sorry I'm not american so I'm going by my school system, sorry for any inconveniences****, I'm English sorry....).**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Lost Odyssey or Mistwalker. If I did, LO would have some changes.**

**Change 1: Kaim and Sarah would not be married.  
**

Chapter 1: First Day

It was the first day of school from the summer holidays. It was beginning of September, so the sun was still shining and it was just the right temperature, not too warm and not too cold. For one person it was the start of his fourth year in upper school, the start of Year 13 (That's for 17-18 years olds). The only difference was, this was the start of his second and final sixthform year at upper school.

Kaim got off the school bus, his hands in his pockets of his jeans. He looked up the front of the school; a sign said "Uhra Upper School". _Another year... _Kaim thought. He then got distracted from some "popular" girls calling his name. Their leader walked up to him. She had long, straight blond hair and brown eyes.

"Hey Kaim. Gonna join the sports teams this year too? I would love to cheer _you _on." Rita giggled and put her around his. (I made this character up, her purpose you will figure out later.) Kaim stared at her blandly before unlinking and walking straight by her, heading towards the entrance of the school. _Rude.... but don't worry Kaim, one day you will be mine..._Rita thought. She looked back at his disappearing figure and then walked back to her posy. In Kaim's three years of upper school, he had always been an all round, all star, sportstar. For some odd reason, he excelled in all sports. Football (soccer), Rugby, Hockey, Tennis, Badminton, Rounder's, Cricket, you name it, you could call him a jock. But he wasn't the type of jock that you would expect; he didn't take in all the glory and get all the girls. He could if he wanted to, but he didn't want all the glory, fame and popularity, he liked keeping people at a distance, that's the way it's always been and always will. For that reason, people didn't really understand him; many thought he was strange for not wanting the glory and female attention of being the sportstar.

Kaim entered the school to see hordes of students. They were repacking their lockers, reuniting with friends and looking at their new timetables for the year. Kaim walked up to his locker, and started to organise before a familiar but annoying face appeared.

"Hey there My Chuckles!" Kaim looked over at the man, slight disgust on his face.

"Jansen, what do you want?"

Jansen was probably Kaim's only true friend to a certain extent. He had known him since they were both small but all the while, Kaim always thought he was extremely annoying. Currently, Jansen was the "womanizer" of the school. Girls seemed to swoon over him, Kaim never understood why.

"Mr Chuckles, you haven't changed one bit. So, what are your plans for this year." Jansen leaned against the lockers.

"None of your concern." Kaim grabbed his bag and made his way to his new classroom.

A blond passed Kaim, too focused on his new timetable to look where he was going. Before long, he bumped into a fellow student, books and papers flying everywhere.

"Oh, I'm sorry. That was my fault. I should have looked where I was going." The blond looked up at the student he collided with. She had porcelain skin, grey/brown eyes and shoulder length chesnut hair. _Wow..._ was all Tolten could think.

"Oh no, it was my fault, I was too involved in my book." She looked up at the stranger, even though her glasses were somewhere in the pile of papers, his features were amazing. Golden hair and crystal blue eyes. She went into a dream state for a few seconds.

"Here, I think these are yours." The blond gave her back her glasses. She put them on, relieved she could see again. They both stood up, and the blond gave the girl her possessions.

"My name is Tolten. I'm new here. Nice to meet you."

"M-My name is Sarah." She could feel her cheeks going red and her heart rate had heightened.

"Well, I must be going now so farewell. Sorry again." Tolten walked off the the direction of his next destination. Sarah looked back at the figure as he walked off. _He's soo charming..._ she smiled to herself before going to her classroom.

Kaim entered his new classroom, he felt slight relief that Jansen happened to be put in another class. As he walked in, he heard gestures from some of his classmates telling him to sit next to them, two people particularly.

"Kaim, old friend! Come sit here, I've made the seat nice and warm for you!" Gongora said. He too was a fellow jock, but unlike Kaim, he loved the glory and attention.

"No!!! Don't sit next him, sit next to me Kaim!!!" Rita shouted. "Maybe we can talk, and get to know each other a little better...." She smirked. Kaim ignored both of them and sat at the desk right at the back, placing his bag on the sit next to him to prevent anyone sitting there.

Gongora stared back at Kaim. "Your loss, Kaim." Before long, Gongora already had the attention of some girls. Rita crossed her arms, furious while one of her "friends" tried to comfort her.

"Don't worry Rita. He'll come around, he's just shy..." Her friend lied.

_Yeah right... I'm gonna get him if this is the last thing I do... _Rita thought.

Once the class was settled, the teacher began to talk.

"Welcome class, I hope you had a nice summer. And welcome to Year 13. Now, I-"

Before Mrs Piddick could continue, Gongora already had something. "Looking good Mrs P." (Not really something Gongora would say but....)

"Thank you Gongora..... now, we have new student this year. Please make her feel welcome."

The door opened and the new student entered. She had a tanned complexion to her skin, cerulean blue eyes and she had beautiful blue, almost navy hair which no one had ever seen before (I can't even really put a colour on Seth's hair). Her fashion sense was odd to most. She wore a denim miniskirt, with some navy over-the-knee socks and a pair of brown boots. She wore a brown vest and some brown armwarmers(This is actually an outfit I actually have lol).

The students stared at her in awe. Kaim looked up from the table to take a look. He examined her for a few seconds before returning to looking out the window.

"Um, hey. I'm Seth Balmore, nice to meet all of you." She smiled.

Some whispered comments were heard. "Where did she get a body like that?? And that hair???" A girl whispered, "I would so do her." whispered one of the jocks. Seth decided to ignore the comments she heard.

"Okay, Seth. Why don't you find a seat and get settled." Seth looked around the class for a spare seat, the only free one she could see was next to Kaim. She walked up to it.

"May I sit here?" She asked. Kaim looked up at her and then removed his bag from the seat so she could sit. "Thanks." She smiled and sat down. The whole class just stared at that table, all the students were in shock that Kaim actually let someone sit next to him.

Rita began to get even more furious.... "I can't believe it... he lets _her_ sit next to him, but not me? When we get out of this classroom, I'm gonna put her in her place." She looked back at Seth, "What does she have that I don't."

Kaim whispered three words in Seth's direction. "Just ignore them."

Seth looked at Kaim before simply nodding. The teacher continued, "Well then, classes start soon so I will let you leave." The bell rung.

The students began to stand up and exit. As Kaim got up, Seth spoke. "I'm sorry, I never caught your name?"

"Kaim."

"Kaim... nice to meet you." She smiled, she put her hand for him to shake. Kaim took her hand and shook it, he was surprised at the strong grip she had and even though it was barely visible, Kaim even smiled, just slightly.

Seth looked at her timetable. "Apparently I have Biology in S6. Do have any idea where that is?"

"That's my next class. I'll take you there." Kaim said.

"Really? Thank you very much." She beamed.

"It's no.... problem?" Kaim said perplexed.

They both walked out of the classroom together. Rita happened to spot them, "Ugh... he's even walking with her!?! This has to be stopped...." Rita and her followers marched up to Kaim and Seth.

"Seth, right? Could I talk to you for a moment? Over there? It'll only take a second." Rita asked. Seth looked Kaim, she was supposed to be going to Biology with him. "I'll wait here." He said.

"Uh, okay..." Seth wandered with Rita to a place slightly more far away. "So, what is it you wanted?"

Rita's face turned from smiley to a sour one. "Stay away from Kaim. He's mine and you can't have him!"

"W-What are you talking about?" Seth asked. Kaim looked over to where Seth and Rita were, he could tell things weren't going well. He began to walk towards them.

"Oh you know what I'm talking about, _Seth Balmore_, so back off!"

Seth began to get angry. "You want me to back off!!" Seth began to click her knuckles, "Listen, you littl-" Before Seth could finish, Kaim interrupted. "Rita... leave her alone. She hasn't done anything to you."

"But...but she was... huh?" Rita moaned.

"Seth, we gonna be late." Kaim put his hand on Seth's back to guide her away from Rita and her posy and towards Biology class. Rita looked at Kaim and Seth before kicking a locker in frustration, unfortunately not causing a dent. "He even touched her. This means war Seth Balmore." (It rhymes... I'm soo lame.)

"Ugh... what was her problem?" Seth asked.

"I wouldn't worry about." Kaim and Seth entered Biology, slightly late of course.

The teacher turned round. "Oh, glad you could make it Kaim.... and you are?" He looked towards the woman next to Kaim.

"I'm Seth Balmore, sorry we're late, he was helping me with something, it's not his fault."

"I'll let you both off, it's the first day, but don't be late again. Now sit down." Seth sat down in the first free seat and signalled for Kaim to sit in the seat next to her, surprisingly, he took it. Unfortunately, Jansen happened to be in Biology too. He looked over at Kaim and Seth.

_Is Kaim actually talking to a girl? Oh, Mr Chuckles, I taught you well.... Damn, she's a looker. Well, if he messes up, I'll give her a ride...._ Jansen smirked to himself.

"Right class, turn to page 126, I know you already have some knowlegde on the cardiovascular system (yeah, I'm a biology student lol) so answer questions 1-10 to see what you have remembered from last year."

Seth opened the book and got started. To Kaim's amazement, she finished the questions in a matter of minutes. She looked up to see him staring at her.

"What? Is there something on my face?" She asked.

"No." Although her making that comment made him look at her face. "You look perfect."

Seth slightly blushed. "...Okay. Yeah, I'm a bit of a wiz when it comes to anything science related." She smiled.

_I never realised... _Kaim eventually woke up at the fact that he was intently looking at Seth, but he didn't know that Jansen was watching him.

"Well, he really is taking an interest in her... go get her man." Jansen whispered.

The biology class continued for an hour. Jansen continued to watch them as they had small conversations together. He watched their eye contact and he could swear he saw Kaim smile once.  
_This girl must be something if he smiled...._

As the class ended, Seth and Kaim walked out of class but then Seth turned to face Kaim.

"Um, thanks for getting me out of trouble earlier with Rita. If you didn't come when you did, things may have turned out differently. And thanks for being the only person who has been nice to me since I got here, as well as being the only sane person I've met so far. Doesn't happen a lot to me..." She looked down at the ground.

"What do you mean doesn't happen alot?" Kaim asked, with tad of concern in his voice.

Seth looked up at him. "Oh, n-nothing. Um.... Listen, Kaim, would you li-" Before Seth could finish her sentence, Jansen came running in.

"Hey! How's it going?" Jansen chimed.

Kaim sighed. "Jansen, what is it?"

"What? A guy can't just say hi..." Jansen could see that Kaim was giving him daggers.

"Well, I can see you guys are busy so I'll go, I'll see you around." Seth said and walked off to her next class, as she knew where that was.

Jansen put his hand on Kaim's shoulder. "She's hot. You should go for her."

"Jansen-"

"No Kaim listen to me." Jansen went round to face him. "A girl like that does not come around every day. I mean look at her, that body, that chest, that bu-" Kaim put his hand over Jansen's mouth.

"Stop talking. You should really stop talking about women like that." That was the last thing he said before walking off.

"Whatever man.... but I know you like her." Jansen said as he walked off to his next class.

Lessons later...

The bell rang for lunch and students scurried off into the canteen (or cafeteria, whatever you wanna call it). The line was at it's longest.

Sarah was standing in queue when someone tapped her on the shoulder, she turned round to see who it was.

"Hello again." Said a familiar blond.

"H-Hi." Sarah said nervously as she pushed up her glasses, she tried to think of something to say. "Um... so what do you think of Uhra Upper so far?"

"Everyone has been very nice to me so far and-" Tolten was interrupted by a swarm of girls coming to him.

"Hi Tolten!!!! Drama was sooo much fun!!!" A girl said.

"Yeah Tolten, you should be an actor!" The group of girls started giggling, before they noticed he was with Sarah.

"What are you doing with that loser? She's not worth your time. Come with us, we have plenty food, we don't mind sharing!"

"Yeah, come with us!" Before Tolten could speak, they pulled him out of line towards "their" table. Tolten looked back when he managed to get out of the girls' grip but when he looked back, Sarah wasn't in the line anymore.

Sarah had run out of the line and was trying to get out of the way of people, out of the canteen, she had lost her appetite. She tried to push past people, one of them being Seth. She caught a glimpse of Sarah's face, she saw a tear run down it. Sarah ran out of the canteen, outside onto the field. Even though Seth didn't know the girl, she thought it was her duty to atleast see what was wrong so she went after Sarah. When she got outside, the sun blasted in her eyes.

"Owww... I almost got blinded." She managed to spot Sarah sitting down by the tree and walked over to her. Sarah had her knees to her chest, she buried her head in arms. Seth kneeled down to her level.

"Are you alright?" Sarah's tear stained face looked up to see the friendly one of Seth's.

"I-I'm fine.... who are you??" Sarah didnt recognise her face.

"Oh, I'm new here, just started today. I'm Seth Balmore, you just looked a little upset and I wanted to know if anything was wrong."

Sarah wiped her face on her sleeves. "It's nothing, really." Sarah tried to smile. Seth sat next to Sarah.

"Are you sure. it looked like those girls were bothering you and I heard the word 'loser'."

Sarah fixed her glasses. "I'm used to it. After all, I'm am a loser...." Sarah mumbled.

Seth seemed a little shocked. "Don't be so hard on yourself. I know I only just met you but you don't seem like a loser to me. To be honest, since I've arrived here, I've felt like a loser. No one has really been nice to me, apart from one person anyway..."

Sarah giggled. "You don't seem like a loser. You seem confident and your attractive, I mean, just look at what you're wearing."

Seth smiled. "Atleast I made you laugh. And by the way, you are very pretty,uh....."

"Sarah."

"...Sarah." Seth nodded. "So... have anybody to eat lunch with because I certainly don't."

Sarah had never had another student be so nice to her before. "Sure... except I didn't get time to grab any lunch." Sarah's belly rumbled.

"I got ya covered. I don't eat food sold in the canteen. Never have. And I made extra so I'm sure we can share because I certainly can't eat all this." Seth removed some sandwiches, fruit, some crisps (yes crisps, not chips) and chocolate.

"Are you sure??" Sarah asked. She felt a bit bad.

"Yeah, its fine. It'll be like a picnic. It's nice and warm out here."

Sarah began to feel comfortable around Seth. She had a warm smile, it reassured her. Maybe she finally had someone to talk to rather than spend all her free time in the library.

Meanwhile, Jansen ended up dragging Kaim to sit at the "popular" table. Kaim sat at the end of the table, trying to block out the meaningless conversations. He looked out the window to see Seth and Sarah eating lunch, they looked like they were enjoying themselves, he sighed. Rita and her gang were still keeping their eye on him.

"Hmmm.... Kaim seems down than usual." Rita said.

"Rita... he's just staring outside that window..."

"He is?? What's he looking at??" She leaned over to peak through the window to see Seth and Sarah eating lunch.

Rita started to get angry and bashed her fists on the table. "WHAT IS IT THAT SHE HAS THAT I DON'T!?" The entire canteen turned and stared at Rita. She quickly sunk back in her seat. An idea struck her.

"This ought to get her out the picture..." An evil grin formed on Rita's face.

**Ta-Da!!! I hope you liked it!! Wonder what Rita's plan is???????? Find out in the next chapter!!! Oh and one more thing.... REVIEW!!!!!!!! By the way, I haven't introduced all the characters if your thinking "People are missing!!!!" so don't panic lol.  
**

**RiRixoxoxoxo  
**


	2. How Far Girls Will Go

**The Joys of Life**

Chapter 2: How Far Girls Will Go

Months had passed and everybody was finally settled into school life. Seth and Sarah had become good friends in those months and were together all the time. They were walking through the halls, giggling about something they saw on their way to school. Seth caught eye contact with Rita as they passed, she immediately stopped laughing and guided Sarah along.

Seth had a real urge to shout the word "slut" but she thought it was better to keep it inside. "Let's keep moving..."

"What's going on with you and Rita? You've been against her since day one...." Sarah asked.

"Well.... from the first conversation I had with her. It's to do with Kaim. Did you know she has this obssession with him?"

Sarah looked at Seth a bit shocked. "Who doesn't. But why does she have something against you?"

"She thinks I'm going to steal him." Seth used hand gestures to emphasise the stealing. "Apparently just because I talk to him every now and then, and sit next to him Biology and Learning Guide that somehow I'm a threat."

Sarah stopped in her tracks. "You've had a conversation with Kaim Argonar. And you sit next to him???"

Seth looked perplexed. "What's so special about it?"

"Um... I've been going to the same schools as Kaim since we were in nursery. He never talks to anyone, well, apart from Jansen... let alone _let_ anyone sit next him. That's just not the type of person he is. If he is letting you do that, then you must being doing something different."

"I'm just being myself, what else can I be??" Seth out her hands on her hips.

Before the conversation could continue, Sarah got distracted by a certain guy walking this way.

"Sarah.... Sarah?? Hello hoho!!!!!!" Seth started frantically waving her hands to attract Sarah's attention, which ultimately failed.

The blond approached them. "Good morning Sarah... and Seth." He seemed for some odd reason to feel slight fear everytime he saw Seth.

"Good Morning Tolten." Sarah said shyly.

"Hey Tolten..." Seth said blandly. "So what was I saying....?" Seth still had no acknowledgement from Sarah "Am I invisible or something...?"

"So, Sarah, uh...... what classes do you have today?" Tolten asked.

"Um, well... I-I have Chemistry, then Math. Then I have double English Lit... that's the only lesson I'm looking forward to and finally... I have PE. With Seth actually... I think we're in the pool."

"Sounds like a nice day." The bell rung, signalling the start of the first lesson. "Well, I must going. Farewell." Tolten waved and ran off to his next class.

"... Bye." Sarah ended with a hiccup. Seth looked at Sarah with a smirk on her face.

"You like him, don't you?"

Sarah's eyes widened. "N-No.... he's just very nice." Sarah tried to hide her redding cheeks. Unfortunately for her, Seth could see through it.

"It's okay if you like him... well, what is it you like about him?" Seth decided to make a little charade out of the situation (sorta like what she did when she first met Kaim in the game, you know the "lovers" bit). "Is it his flowing, golden hair.... ?" She whispered in Sarah's ear, "or his big, blue puppy dog eyes?" She said the other.

"Well... um... what does it matter anyway, why would he go for a girl like me? I'm not like them." She pointed at the "hot popular" girls. Seth went round to face Sarah and put her hands on Sarah's shoulders.

"Sarah, I can tell the Tolten is one of those few guys who looks for more then just a cute face, not that you don't have one. You have beautiful personality, you are the most intelligent person I'v ever met and on top of that, you are beautiful anyway. All we need to do, is fix up your wardrobe a bit and he will be yours." Seth stared down at Sarah's clothes. She was wearing a plain t-shirt with jeans and boots.

Sarah looked up at Seth. "You really think that would work?"

Seth shook her head."Honey, I don't think it. I know it. No come on, we're gonna be late."

As Seth and Sarah headed off, Seth got a tap on the shoulder.

"Pardon me but do you know were S12 is? I am supposed have chemistry there." Said a brunnette.

"Uh, yeah we are on our wa-" As Seth turned round she almost lost her footing. "Ming?!?!"

She looked up from her timetable. "Seth?!" Before she could say anything else, Seth ambushed her with a hug, Ming almost fell back with the impact but returned the hug. "But how did you know it was me?"

Seth released her hug. "Ming, you can't miss those purple eyes of yours anywhere.. But still, what are you doing here?" (I'm keeping the colour of before she regained her memories. Purple's pretty.)

"Well, I just felt like a change in my life." Ming answered, she spotted Sarah behind Seth. Ming smiled and went behind Seth to see Sarah's face. "And you may be?"

Sarah looked up to answer the question when she saw Ming's face, her eyes widened. _Wow... she's beautiful..._ She realised she was just staring and started fixing her glasses."My name is Sarah... I heard your name was Ming... you're not Ming, princess of Numara? Are you?"

"Sarah... It's a pleasure to meet you. And unfortunately, guilty as charged." Ming bowed. Seth giggled at Ming's formality. "Ming... there's no need to be formal around here, you're not in a private school. Which reminds me, why did you leave?"

Ming looked towards Seth. "I wanted... freedom. I want to live like you do Seth. I want excitement. I have been living with a millions rules since they day I was born, I want to know what it is like to live..."

Seth laughed to herself. "What?" Ming looked slightly perplexed at her reaction.

"Believe me, there are a lot of aspects of my life that aren't that exciting and on that subject, you are going to excite a lot of guys here if you don't cover up that chest of yours." Seth looked down at Ming's top. She was wearing a simple dark purple v-neck vest. "Here." Seth removed a light weight lilac scarf that she was wearing and put it round Ming's neck, safely covering the majority of her cleavage.

"Problem solved. Okay, let's go." Seth grabbed Sarah and Ming's hand, the trio made their way to chemistry. They entered chemistry to meet . (I decided to use mine as an example because he rocks, he's is a 60 year old gossip who get's away with insulting everybody, swearing and generally, insulting the male students' sexuality. He is sooo cool, His name is Mr Maple for pete's sake! Probably one of my idols.I MUST ASK MANEESHA FOR THE CLASS PHOTO! ).

As they entered Chemistry, all eyes turned to them. "Sorry we're late. I bumped into a new student and old friend of mine."

Ming stepped forward from behind Seth and formally introduced herself. "My name is Ming Numara and I will be attending your school."

The class was in awe of Ming's appearance.

"No way... the princess of Numara is going to school here." said a student. One of students that was in that class happened to be Jansen. Throughout the months, Seth and Jansen's friendship had grown, but, more Seth found Jansen extremely irritating and hit him.. alot. She finally knew how Kaim felt having him around.

"Okay then. Would you now take a seat." Mr Maple said, he commenced the lesson. Seth, Sarah and Ming took their seats, the only ones available happened to behind Jansen.

"Right now students. We were studying a unit called the mole last time, to start off-" Before Mr Maple could continue he was interrupted by Jansen speaking. Jansen swivelled round to face Ming.

"Haven't seen you from this side of water... Ming, am I correct." Jansen reached for Ming's hand and kissed it. Ming blushed lightly while Seth threw up a little in her mouth.

"Jansen!" Mr Maple shouted, Jansen swivelled back round. "Would you listen! You can continue with your "desires" at the end of class."

The class giggled at Mr Maple's comment and Jansen swivelled back round to face the front. Ming giggled at his comment and Seth just stared at her with bewilderment.

"Ming, I know that face. He is not right for you, please, I'm begging you." Seth tried to give the best puppy dog eyes she could. She also looked at Sarah as she needed her aid.

"What Seth is trying to say is that Jansen has a reputation with women. He gets what he wants then throws them aside. She doesn't want you to be one of those women." Sarah explained.

Seth grasped Ming's hands and put them to her chest. "What Sarah said. He's bad news." Ming simply smiled. "Seth.... and my new friend Sarah. You have nothing to feel anxious over. This man you call Jansen seems to a gentlemen but I have seen his type before."

Sarah looked at Ming when she heard the word friend. "F-friend?" Ming nodded at her. "Yes, you have welcomed me into your school, and you have treated me well so far. I consider you a friend."

"Yeah, Sarah. I love you too." Seth put her head on Sarah's shoulder. "Ugh....I'm so tired." Seth yawned.

Sarah smiled. "Yes. I have noticed that recently. You always extremely tired on Tuesdays and Thurdays. Why is that?" Seth's eyes looked up at Sarah.

"It's nothing." Seth sat back up straight and started to do her work. Ming and Sarah both looked at eachother but they shrugged it off.

A few hours later...

"My favourite subject... PE!" Seth went into the changing rooms and was one of the first to get changed into her swimsuit. Like Kaim, Seth also had great athletic ability. Her body showed it in itself. Since the class was all girls, the teacher Miss Smith, didn't mind if they wore their own swimming costumes, within reason. Bikinis which covered appropriately were allowed.

Seth wore a simple navy bikini, and had to pull Sarah out of the changing room. "Come on Sarah. The swimsuit that you bought looks fine!" With a last pull of strength, Seth managed to get Sarah by the pullside. Sarah was wearing a baby blue tankini with a dark blue lining (Ming is in a different PE class). While the girls were doing swimming, the boys were on there way to play rugby on the field. But to get from the guy's changing rooms to the field they had to walk past the hall, one side of the hall had wide long windows going down it, which displayed the pool area. Jansen being himself, always took a look at the girls.

"Woah, I knew Seth was hot. But not that hot. When did Sarah get that body." Kaim happened to be walking past Jansen when he was stopped by Jansen grapsing his rugby shirt.

"Jansen, let go-" Before Kaim could finish his sentence, Jansen interupted him.

"Kaim, just look." Kaim sighed and looked up. His eyes met Seth's, who suprising didn't have a look of disgust on her face, more of one that was trying not to laugh. She waved at Kaim. Kaim stared at Seth for a few seconds before acknwoledging with a simple nod of the head. Shortly after, Seth did a perfect execution of a dive into the water. Her body glided in the water as if she were a mermaid.

Rita also happened to be in Seth and Sarah's class. And was getting ticked off by the second. "Seth, you're not perfect. I'm gonna find that one fault that you have, just you wait and see. Kaim won't find you so perfect after that... and then he will be mine." She whispered. She also dived into the water to join the rest of the class in the pool.

"Jansen, let's go. Everyone is already on the field." Kaim walked off, Jansen spending a few more seconds by the glass before following.

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The bell signaled the end of period 5. The girls got out of the pool, went in the showers and returned to the warm comfort of clothes. Seth and Sarah stepped out of the changing rooms to meet Ming.

"Hey Ming. So, how was your first day in public school?" Seth asked.

Ming put her finger to her chin. "Well.... it was certainly different. There are also a group of girls who keep following me everywhere I go."

Ming looked backed to what seemed to be her fanclub, Seth and Sarah giggled. "I think you have some admirers." Sarah said.

"Yeah, I think you do." Seth stared at her watch. "I need to go. Seeya tomorrow!" She walked off in the direction of home, little did Seth know, but she wasn't alone. Rita was taking her plan into action, the only way to get Seth out of the picture was to look into every aspect of her life.

Rita had success so far, Seth led her to the some of the lower class parts of the city. To avoid Seth catching her, Rita would hide inbetween alleyways or go into the shadows of buildings. She looked at her surroundings. _Ewwww.... this place is a dump!_ She thought.

After a while, Seth stopped at the tiny flat at the corner of the street. She put the key in and attempted to unlock the door. "For the love of the oceans!" The door wasn''t budging even with the aid of a key. Seth resorted to force by bashing the door open by her foot. Rita peered at the house behind a tree that happened to be well-positioned.

"This is gold.. Seth, you're going down." Rita took out her phone and took pictures of the neighbourhood as well as taking a picture of Seth walking into her home. "Well.... looks like my work here is done. That was easier than I thought, now, time to get out of this hell hole." Rita made her way home, a little hop in her step from her new found glory.

Seth entered her home to find a note on the ground which must have came through the letter box. "Eviction notice...?"

It read:

_You have failed in paying the rent to accommodate this flat. If the value of £500 is not payed by 17/05/09, you will be evicted._

"No.... no no no. This is not happening. That's tomorrow, I don't have that money."

Seth's parents had both died quite recently in an unfortunate accident, apart from them, she had no family. She was an only child. She was also 18, so she was allowed to live on her own. She had no choice since she had no other family. She sat on one of the few pieces of furniture she had and put her hands to her face. "What am I gonna do? I can't tell Sarah or Ming what situation I'm in, it would be pathetic. I am trying to stay independent, but it's so difficult." Seth picked up a picture of her and her parents. "I miss you both so much... why did you have to go?" A tear dropped onto the photo.

"Seth, you can't cry." She took some deep breaths and composed herself. "Gotta get to work." Seth worked two jobs in the majority of her free time, unfortunately, even those couldn't keep up with her rent as well as essentials like food and water for herself. She quickly put on her work clothes, which were a black blouse and trousers and quickly went out of the flat.

The next day of school had arrived and Seth walked into the halls to see posters everywhere, on lockers, on the walls. "What is this?" She took one of them off the wall. She poster showed the pictures that Rita had taken on her phone, including the one of Seth. Seth looked up to see Rita and friends, Rita especially with a smug look on her face. Seth was beginning to feel that feeling of misery come back to her. _I guess happiness isn't for me..._ she thought.

She walked up to Rita, trying not to show how much she wanted to cry, she uttered two question. "What is wrong with you? Does this make you feel happy about yourself?" Immediately after that, she walked straight past Rita, and everyone. Keeping her head down.

"Seth!" Sarah and Ming shouted. Seth stopped in her footsteps and look back, she could see them coming towards her. "Please don't. Just leave me alone." Sarah and Ming just looked at each toher and obeyed her request. Seth continued on her quest to get out of the hellhole, ignoring people's laughs and comments, she happened to walk past Kaim and Jansen but took no notice of them. Seth was vigourous making her way to the pool, away from everyone.

Kaim stared as he saw her figure disappear and then he looked at Rita who was waving at him. "Jansen, I'm not going to English today. Make up something for me." With that, Kaim went out on pursuit of Seth.

"Okay...?" Jansen said as he leaned against the lockers. Rita's smile went to a frown when Kaim still didn't acknowledge her. The rage slowly started to build inside her before she resulted to kicking lockers again, still not making a dent. "WHY... WON'T... HE... LOVE... ME!?!" Her "friends" started to crowd her with comforting words.

Seth had made it to the pool and wiped away a stray tear. She didn't have her swimming costume on her so she just took off her clothes and dived into the pool in her underwear, she was to frustrated with everything else to care. She swam to the deep end and hung onto it. "Why do I bother?" The tears started coming back to her and this time she couldn't hold them back.

Kaim entered the pool area to see a pile of clothes and boots, he looked further on to see Seth, her head in her arms. She quietly walked round but as her got closer to Seth's location the footsteps became louder and Seth could hear them. "S-Sarah... Ming... I... I just wanna be alone." Her tear streaked face, even though it was harc to tell because she was wet, looked up to see Kaim.

"K-Kaim? What are you doing here?" She quickly tried to wipe her slightly running nose.

"... I came to see if you were okay." He sat by the poolside, next to her.

"I'm fine. It's nothing, you don't have to be here."

Kaim said nothing and began to remove his shirt. "Kaim, what are you doing?" Kaim still didn't answer and began to remove his jeans and shoes, Seth coudn't do anything but stare at him undressing. He stopped at his boxers before diving in the water. (Darn... lol)

When he immerged from under the water, he decided to speak. "I also come here when I need to think." Seth tried to smile but she couldn't.

"Why does this always happen to me?" She let go of the edge and swam towards him. "Why does what?" Kaim asked.

She looked directly into his eyes. "I don't know... everything. Ever since my... nevermind. I should go." She was about to swim towards an edge when she felt a hand pull her back. "Don't. You can tell me."

Seth looked back at Kaim, she look straight at him and she could feel her heart racing, she felt different around him then she did with Sarah or even Ming. She felt she could trust him.

"Well, about a year ago. My parents died in an accident. I don't have any other family, ever since then, I have been living independently, it has been hard, but I've been getting by. But also since the accident, everything has been going wrong for me... things are just getting worse. I'm being evicted from my flat today because I can't afford the rent, I have nowhere else to go. I don't know what I'm going to do. And school... well, I'm a laughing stock now. Everything is going great for me." Seth was trying to keep a brave face but her breaking voice was showing how much she wanted to cry.

Kaim had never been particularly close to people, but looking at Seth, he felt this pain and wouldn't go away. He had been feeling this pain for a few months now. Kaim looked down at the water, and out of an impulse, swam up to Seth and pulled her towards him. Seth was in slightly shocked being against Kaim's almost naked body, but at the same time, she felt comfort from him. She decided that holding the tears back wasn't doing her any favours. As she cried quietly, she could feel his hand going up and down her back, she could have fallen asleep in his arms right there and then. "It's okay." Were the only words Kaim said. Seth looked up at Kaim, she looked straight into his eyes and then slowly leaned in, their lips met. Seth pulled away.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-" She was silenced by Kaim's lips rejoining with hers. His hands slowly going around her waist, pulling her even closer, Seth closed her eyes and wrapped her arms wrapped around Kaim's neck. Slowly Seth's tongue made it's way into Kaim's mouth and he welcomed it.

While Seth and Kaim's tongues danced, Ming and Sarah decided it was their duty as her friends to go and see Seth, regardless of whether she wanted it or not. They made their way through the changing rooms, by the entrance of the poolside. Ming was stopped in her tracks when she saw Seth and Kaim.

"Oh my goodness!" She whispered. Sarah was not far behind Ming. "Ming, why are you just standing there... oh, wow..."

Ming and Sarah quickly hid behind the wall at the image of Kaim and Seth in their own little world. "Well, I don't think our aid is needed." Ming stated.

"I suppose not. Well... we should, um, get to class, and definately not tell anyone about this." Sarah suggested.

"I agree with that proposition." Sarah grabbed Ming's hand and they quickly ran out of the changing rooms, huge smiles plastered on their faces.

Seth pulled away from Kaim, although his hands still around her waist. "Wow..." Was the only word Seth could say, she looked up Kaim who had a small smile on his face. "Hey... you're smiling."

Kaim put his hand to her cheek. "Yeah, I guess I am." Kaim's pain had vanished. Whenever he spent any amount of time with Seth, whether it be a few minutes or an hour, he automatically felt that degree happier. "Well then, we should go." He said.

"But where? I'm not going to class today, with all that has happened. I would like to go home, but considering I'm being evicted, my choices are limited. And-" Seth was silenced by Kaim's finger on her lips.

"I want you to pack all of your belongings. You're staying with me." Kaim felt slightly shocked at his own words while Seth was struggling to find words.

"A-are you serious? No, I couldn't, I would be intruding and it would be wrong of me and-"

"Seth?" Kaim interrupted.

"Yes?"

"Come with me." He slowly guided her out of the pool with his hand. Seth gave in and let him take her.

They had both climbed out of the pool and realised that their underwear was soaking wet. "Well, I'm going to need to take these off." Seth said, she looked at Kaim who was just staring at her. "Well, no peeking." She winked. Kaim turned round so he wasn't facing her with one hand on his hip.

Seth unhooked her bra and Kaim heard it as it fell to the floor. She then took off her knickers and quickly put on her jeans and her vest. "If it gets cold outside, I'm in a bit of trouble." She said as she looked at breasts. She put on her jacket for safe measure. Then put her socks and shoes on. By the time she had turned round Kaim was already fully dressed. Seth guessed without his boxers on by she decided not to ask.

"My hair is still wet... do you mind if I use the hair dryer before we go?" Seth asked.

"I guess not."

"Great. And it looks like you may need it to." Seth and Kaim walked into the changing rooms and quickly made themselves look as if they hadn't gone swimming and then walked out into the halls. As they were walking through the halls, they noticed Rita and her gang around the halls, they probably decided to ditch class. Rita noticed that Kaim was walking in her direction.

"Kaim! You came to me!" She ran up to him and then noticed that Seth was behind him. "Wait, what is **she** doing here?" Seth looked at Rita but didn't bother getting angry, she just looked down at the floor and stayed silent, she moved round next to Kaim.

"Rita... what you did was wrong." He look at Rita with his usual bland expression.

"But Kaim... I only did this because I really care about you. **She** isn't good for you." She pointed at Seth. "We're meant to be together, why can't you understand that?" Rita put her hands on Kaim's chest and he quickly removed them.

"Rita, stop. Seth, let's go." Kaim put his hand on Seth's waist to get her out of Rita's way before intertwining his fingers in hers as they exited the building.

"This is not happening. He has only known her a few months, I have dedicated my entire life to getting him and nothing... not even a smile from him."

"Rita... don't talk like that. You will get him, I know it, it's destiny." Says her best friend.

"Oh I know I will. All I have to do is take Seth out of the picture. I have a plan that is certain not to fail." The smell of malevolence was in the air as Rita began to feel confident again. Her friends even looked a tad frightened of her.

Outside...

Seth and Kaim were walking in the directions of Seth's flat, she decided to bring up conversation. "So... um, are we, well... uh, a couple now?"

Kaim looked at Seth and smiled. "Well, I wouldn't say no to the idea." Seth put his arm around her, and he leaned in and kissed her forehead. They continued walking.

Things seemed to be looking better for Seth. Who knows what is ahead.

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**Well, I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, I know I enjoyed writing it. I'm really sorry that it is soo late, I have just been busy, busy, BUSY! Please Review!  
**

**RiRi**

**p.s. DarthRevanShepard, I'm very happy I inspired you.**


	3. It's Okay

**The Joys of Life**

Chapter 3: It's Okay

Seth arrived at her flat with Kaim, she didn't know whether to feel slightly insecure about its appearance. "Well, this would be my humble home." She cleared her throat before unlocking the door, it opened it to reveal the just as dull interior.

"Isn't it beautiful?" She said sarcastically. She guided Kaim to the living room. "Wait here. I shouldn't belong, feel free to sit down." Seth left the room and quickly went into her bedroom to gather her belongings. Kaim wandered around the living room, absorbing his surroundings, he noticed a picture on the table. He picked it up, it showed a family picture of Seth with her parents. Kaim could tell where she got her looks from, her hair was like her mother's, but her mother's was much longer and she also had exactly the same smile, that smile seemed to be a winner, everytime Seth would smile at him class, it brightened his day a little, even if he wouldn't show it himself. He examined the father, Seth had his eyes, they were very intense and they showed honesty as well as a harsh reality, which Kaim couldn't pinpoint.

Seth was packing her suitcase, going through items that she thought were inappropriate and were no use to her anymore. As she was going though her belongings, she found a familiar small blue velvet box. She opened to reveal a pendant, it had beautiful blue sapphire that matched Seth's eyes, she took it out of the box and dangled in front of her and smiled. _I know you are always with me... _she thought.

Kaim put down the photo, thought back to what happened at the pool. He couldn't figure out what came over him, being close to someone wasn't who he was and was very difficult for him to do, it was difficult for him to reveal his true emotions, even his eyes were able to conceal them. Why he returned the kiss that Seth gave him, he honestly couldn't answer, it was completely out of character for him. He sat down on a chair, leaned back, folded his arms and took a deep breath. His eyes glanced down to the floor. He couldn't figure out what happened these past few months. He had even offered her a place in his home, something was definatley not right with him.

He asked himself one question: _Why do I feel like this?_

Thinking about it was beginning to give him a headache so he tried to distract himself but it seemed Seth was about to do that for him. She walked back in, with her suitcase, which wasn't big but she had learnt that having a lot wasn't the most important thing. She took the blue velvet box and just stared at it's contents. Kaim stood up, slightly intrigued.

"What's that?" He walked towards her.

Seth looked up at him. "This? Well, not long before my parents died, my mother gave me this. It's one of my family's treasures, it's only given to the females of the family. On a girl's sixteenth birthday, the pendant his handed down to them and they are to look after it until they have a daughter, and on her sixteenth birthday she is given it. The cycle just goes on. If the parents are unable to have a girl, they are passed to other relatives with daughters so the cycle never stops, it's been in my family for hundreds of years. Currently, I'm the guardian."

Seth removed the pendant to show Kaim, when he saw it, even he was in amazement of it's brilliance.

"My mother told me things about this jewel...."

Years ago....

A small 5 year-old Seth was in bed ready to be tucked in by her mother. Seth stared intently at the necklace around her mother's neck.

"Momma?" She asked. Her mother looked up with a smile, putting a strand of her long blue hair behind her ear. "Yes, Seth?"

"Why do you always wear that same necklace everyday?"

Seth's mother sat on Seth's bed, she unclipped the necklace from around her neck and wrapped her arm around her daughter.

"Well, actually, it's a very special necklace with magical powers."

Seth beamed up at her mother with excitement. "Magical Powers!?"

Seth's mother giggled and started to stroked her daughter's hair, she put the pendant in Seth's hand. "You see that little blue sapphire in the middle? That's where all the magic happens."

Seth twiddled the pendant in her fingers, examining it more closely. "Really? What kind of magic?"

"Inside that blue sapphire is a guardian angel, as long as you have it with you, it will protect you where ever you go." Seth's mother looked down her daughter who was in sheer wonderment, Seth handed back to her. Seth's mother got out of the bed and fully tucked Seth in. "And one day, Seth, this will belong to you."

"Really!?!" Seth exclamed.

"Really. Now, time to go to sleep, a brand new day is coming. Goodnight Seth." She kissed Seth on the forehead. "Night Momma." Soon after, Seth fell into a deep sleep with a little smile on her face.

Back in the present...

"Maybe if she hadn't of given it to me, and she had kept it, even for that little while longer. She would be here today."

Kaim looked at Seth, who was twiddling the pendant between her fingers. "Maybe it's time you wore that."

"Huh?" Seth looked up at Kaim, he took the pendant from her hand and put it round her neck. "There." He stepped away.

Seth looked down and admired the pendant on her, she turned towards Kaim. "Thank you. I think you're right, I will wear it. In honour of my mother and father." She was about to pick up her suitcase and question that had been logded in her mind was brought to the front.

"Kaim, before we leave, may I ask you a question?"

"Yeah."

Seth was trying to piece the right words in her head, she soon paced for a few moments around the living room.

"Earlier today, when I, well, kissed you. Why did you return it? I'm not saying that it was wrong or right, but, I wasn't expecting that."

Kaim's eyes went to the floor, trying to find an answer. "Because..." He stuttered. He was put on the spot, and he couldn't answer.

"Because?" Seth walked up to him, lowering her head to try and catch his eye.

"Because... I'm not sure. I... don't know how to answer that question."

Seth's head lowered to the floor, but then she looked back up, Kaim was expecting a face of disappointment, but, she just smiled at him. "You know what, it's okay that you don't know. To be honest, I'm not sure what happened either, but that doesn't mean that it's bad. Why don't we just see where the wind takes us, eh?"

Even when no one else could think of anything to say, Seth always had something to say, being free-spirited helped her find answers that most people couldn't. Kaim looked at Seth and simply nodded.

"Alright then. Well, I'm finished packing, let's get out of this place." She grabbed her small suitcase and exited her soon-to-be former home, Kaim followed.

Outside of the building, Seth looked left and right, pretty much clueless. "So, which way do we go from here?"

"This way." Kaim pointed right. "Okay. Let's go." Seth immediately answered. Even though Seth had no idea where she was going, she always seemed to be in front. Even though Kaim wouldn't say it, this was one of the things he admired about her. She had this sense of exploration about her, she was an adventurer at heart.

Back at School...

Sarah and Ming had searched every inch of the school for Kaim and Seth since they saw them in the pool. Sarah stopped walking, "Where could they be? We've looked everywhere." She pushed up her glasses, letting out a huge sigh.

"Well, I'm going to say they are no longer on the school grounds. Although I can't say where they have disappeared to..." They went over to their lockers to collect thier books f

After many turnings, alleyways and roads, they finally made it. Seth almost dropped her luggage when she saw the house. "You... live here!?!" She was gobsmacked.

Past Seth's eyes, a huge house stood infront of her. She glanced down at the massive front garden, the amazing amount of pathways, just leading to the grand front door.

"Yeah." Was Kaim's answer.

"Wow! This is just... woah..." She turned to him. "How can I ever repay you? I can pay rent like I did at my flat, I'm not high maintenance so I won't cause any disturbances. Oh, and I will-"

Seth was stopped by Kaim's voice. "You owe me nothing."

"No, I have to do something."

"I can afford another person without too much trouble."

"That's not the point!" Seth quickly lowered her voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to raise my voice. I don't like to take charity, if I can do anything, whether it be cooking, cleaning, anything. I'll do it. Please, let me help." Seth looked straight into Kaim's eyes, she was being deadly serious.

Kaim sighed, knowing he couldn't win against her, let alone any woman in an argument. "Fine. How would you like to be chief cook?"

"It's perfect. I just hope my cooking is the right standard." Her serious face turned back to it's usually warm demeanour. They started to walk towards the door. "So, anybody else live here apart from you?"

"My father."

"Just your father?"

"Yeah. My mother died when I was three." Seth looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry for your loss. If it's any consolation, I know how you feel."

"It's fine. I don't really remember her." They arrived at the door and Kaim put his key in. The door opened to show the grand hallway. The walls were beige and there were spiral stairs to the right leading to the second floor of the mansion. On the current floor, in the middle, a statue had been placed. Seth peered at the figure before walking up to it.

"Who's this? Resembles you quite a lot Kaim." Before Kaim could answer, another voice was heard from a door opening on the left.

"That would be me." A tall man, about the same height as Kaim, stepped from out of the door. He had similar, quite strong facial features like Kaim, although age had taken it's toll as lines were beginning to appear, his hair was considerably shorter than Kaim's, small grey hairs noticable. The definate difference between them was that Kaim's eyes were very different, his father had extremely dark brown eyes, almost black. He also gave out what seemed to be a welcoming aura.

"You must be Kaim's father. Nice to meet you." Seth walked up to him and shook his hand.

"The pleasure is mine." He looked towards Kaim. "And this young lady is?"

Kaim walked up to his father before switching his glance to Seth who was looking at him. "This... is Seth."

Kaim's father peered at Seth intently, especially her face, concentrating on her eyes. "Seth... interesting. Please, call me Artemis."

"Of course... Artemis." Seth smiled genuinely at him. Artemis felt like he recognised that smile. _That smile... where have I seen it before?  
_

"Dad?" Kaim said to get his father's attention. Artemis snapped out of his trance.

"Yes, Kaim?" Seth looked at Kaim, his faced showed slight hesitation which was very rare to see on him. Before Kaim could speak, Seth cut it to save him the trouble since she was the one with the situation.

"Mr Argonar, I am here to ask a large favour."

Artemis looked at Seth with interest. "Please, no formalities. Proceed."

"Due to some recent circumstances, I have been left to find else where to live. Kaim offered a place for me here, I declined, but he insisted."

"He insisted, eh?" Artemis had a slight smirk on his face. Kaim inched towards Seth and whispered. "Where are you going with this?"

"I tell ya when I get there." She whispered back, she returned he attention to Artemis who seemed to be slightly perplexed but he situation.

"I am here to ask for your permission to stay, not for free of course. I will clean, cook, you name it, my mother had the best recipes. But if I can't stay-"

Artemis smiled and shook his head at Seth's eagerness. "Sorry, Seth, did you just say your mother** had** the best recipes?"

Seth nodded. "...She died about a year ago along with my father in accident. But I try not to think of it as a negative thing, they have both gone to a better place. I'll see them again, I know I will." Seth twiddled her pendant in her hand that was around her neck.

"I am sorry for your loss..." Artemis just looked at the ground for a few moments, looking as if he wanted to say something.

"Thank you. And please, don't worry if I'm not able to stay, I'll figure something out." Seth continued to smile.

"I don't think you will have to go through that trouble." He smiled. "I have a good feeling about you, Seth. You are welcome to stay."

Seth eyes lit up and she was bursting with gratitude, she couldn't help herself. She went up to Artemis and hugged him, maybe slightly too tight, she quickly released her grip.

"I'm sorry about that. Hehe..." Seth said slightly embarrassed. Artemis adjusted his clothing and even laughed a little. "It's quite alright Seth. I must say, you are a lively one."

"Why... thanks, I think." Seth didn't know whether that was an insult or compliment.

"Kaim, would you show her to her new room?"

Kaim nodded before guiding Seth along, up the spiral staircase. Artemis watched them, carefully examining them, specifically Kaim. Kaim seemed more relaxed than usual, which is one thing that Alastair picked up on. There also was not a lot of distance between the two, which was odd for Alastair to see because Kaim wasn't the type to let people in easily, that Kaim offered Seth a place here was beyond his mind. But regardless of that, Artemis felt relief, just to know Kaim was becoming more open with people. Since his mother's death, Kaim locked himself away from people. Artemis thought this was due to Kaim not wanting to feel vulnerable by getting close to other people. That's the reason Kaim is the way he is today. But, this person named Seth has definately been able to break that border. Whether they are friends or more, Kaim didn't say but as Kaim's father, Artemis could tell.

"Kaim, don't mess this up." Were Alastair's final words before he returned to his study.

Seth and Kaim had arrived at their destination, Kaim pushed open the door to Seth's new bedroom.

Seth's face was picture at the room beyond her. "No way! This is my room!?" Seth exclamed.

"Yeah." Was Kaim's one syllable answer.

Seth walked in and put down her suitcase, she spun around in amazement at the space. "It's soo big!"

Kaim leaned against the door and smirked at Seth's excitement. She stopped spinning when she saw the bed, she just froze for about two seconds and then silently walked towards it. She tilted her head up at Kaim. "T-this is my bed?"

Kaim nodded. Infront of Seth was definately the largest bed she had ever seen, it could of held about 4 people in there with a lot of room for each of them. She sat on the edge and slowly laid back, the bed slowly moulded to her needs. "I can't even describe how good this feels. I can't get up, my body won't allow it... this is heaven." Seth sighed.

Kaim walked over to the bed. "Do you need help getting up?"

Seth turned her head to face him. "That would be helpful." Kaim went round and held out his hand and Seth gladly took it. As Seth was being pulled up, she lost her balance and fell into Kaim.

"Woah!" Seth's impact into Kaim wasn't enough to bring him down, but he did wobble. Seth looked up to see a slightly shocked expression on Kaim's face. "I lost my balance. Sorry."

Seth made herself stable on her own two feet. She looked at the time on her watch. "Well, I should probably start on dinner... But, I may need directions to the kitchen."

"It's your first night. You don't need to cook anything." Kaim looked at Seth who was exiting the room and walking down the stairs.

"Well, think of it as a dinner of thanks for letting me stay in your humble aboad." She said.

While Seth was making her way down, she was ambushed by two young children, who seemed to be in the middle of game.

"I am Captain Cooke! Legendary pirate of the Seven Seas!"

Seth decided to play along even if she had know idea who they were. "You won't make me walk the plank, will you?" She said, raising her hands in submission.

Cooke removed her eye patch and peered at Seth. "I've never seen you before. Mack, do you know her?"

A small, shy boy approached her, without getting to close. "No... Who are you?" Seth kneeled down to their level.

"My name is Seth. I'm a friend of Kaim's. I go to his school."

Cooke moved closer to Seth, with the most perplexed look on her face, looking as if she had been told a farce. "You're a friend... of Uncle Kaim's?"

"Yeah... Uncle?" She smiled.

"My mum was his older sister." Cooke replied.

_Was?..._ Seth thought. She didn't want to ask what happen to the mother but she kept it in the front of her mind.

"Did Kaim invite you here?" Mack asked, his nerves slowly seemed to be disappearing as his interest rose.

"He did. In fact, I'm now living here, for the time being."

"Really? Kaim let you live here? Did you hypnotise him?" Cooke asked.

Seth laughed at Cooke's comment. "No... he invited me without my influence. So... I see you like pirates. My great great great grandmother was a pirate."

Cooke's eyes lit up and she grasp Seth's hands. "Your great great great grandma was a female pirate! That is so cool!"

"You have tight grip there... Cooke?" Seth said slightly wincing at the pain.

Cooke nodded her head. "That's me. And this my brother, Mack."

"Well then, nice to meet you, Cooke, Mack."

Kaim walked down the steps in search of Seth but instead was ambushed by Cooke.

"Cooke?"

Cooke had the biggest smile on her face, and grabbed one of his hands. "Uncle Kaim... you didn't tell us you had a girlfriend."

Kaim stood in silence for a few moments trying to piece together what he could say to his young niece. Seth put her hand over her mouth, hiding the huge smile plastered on her face just looking at the expression on Kaim's face.

"...There are some things that you... don't need to know Cooke." Cooke looked at him with complete perplexion. Kaim managed to release his hand from her grip and walked down the rest of the stairs towards Seth.

"So, Uncle Kaim, where's the kitchen?" The smile on Seth's face was still beaming.

Kaim quirked an eyebrow at her. "It's down the hall, I'll show you."

"Right. Seeya later, Cooke, Mack." She waved at them as she walked away with Kaim. Cooke had grumpy expression on her face.

"Things that I don't need to know... what does that mean?"

"Adult stuff?" Mack said.

Cooke gave daggers towards Mack. "What, are you saying I'm not mature enough?" She was slowly approaching Mack, who was equally backing away.

"No... I mean Kaim probably doesn't want to tell you right now."

"Yeah right... I'll just talk to Seth, she seems nice. I can see if she will tell me." Cooke skipped off in the direction of the kitchen.

"Cooke... wait! Nevermind." Mack sighed and went up to his room.

Inside the kitchen, Seth was preparing a meal, she was finely chopping lettuce when Cooke marched through the door. "Hey Seth!"

Seth would have replied immediately but instead she was in slight agony from nipping her finger with the knife instead of the lettuce thanks to Cooke's grand entrance. "... Hey, Cooke." She wrapped her finger in a kitchen towel. "By any chance so you know where the first aid kit is?"

"It's in the cupboard to your right. Why?"

"Oh... no reason, just good to know where it is. So, what is it you want?" Seth's eye twitched with the stinging affliction of her finger.

"Well, since we are both girls here... I wanted to ask you about Kaim."

Seth shot a look at Cooke. "What about him?"

Cooke paced about the kitchen. "You know..." Cooke was about to burst. "Is he a good boyfriend? What was it like when you kissed him? Are you in love with him-"

"Woah there, Cooke..." Seth went down to her level. "Where is this coming from?"

Cooke went as far as to raise an eyebrow at Seth. "I may only be 12, by I'm smarter then I look. I could tell you are both more than friends..."

Seth knew she had been beaten, there was no point in lying. "How obvious was it?"

Kaim was about to walk into the kitchen when he could hear voices echoeing from it. He stood listened till he recognised the voices. _Cooke... what are you up to?_ He thought. But instead of interrupting the conversation, he decided to carry on listening.

"Well, it wasn't easy to tell with you since I don't know you that well. But...Kaim seems different around you, I've never seem him like this before."

"Right... so what's the difference between the way he acts with me and with others?"

"Duh... but," Cooke paced around the kitchen, trying to think of a way to say it, she came to holt and faced Seth. "I can't explain it. He's just different, and I thought I saw him sorta... kinda smile?"

Seth smiled. "I noticed that too. But that doesn't mean it's because of me."

"I think it is." Cooke giggled and ran out of the kitchen, Seth sighed and quickly bandaged up her cut finger before continuing to prepare the meal. Cooke bumped into Mack in her little charade, "Oh, hey Mack." She said quickly before dashing into the dining room. Mack's eyes focused on the door to the kitchen, _I wonder what Cooke said to her... _He shrugged and made his way into the living room, joining his grandfather, who seemed to reading the newspaper. She hopped onto the sofa, resting his head on Artemis's arm. "What are you reading?"

Meanwhile, after Kaim had guided Seth to the kitchen, he had retreated to the comfort of his room. He just lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling, into nothingness. He tilted his head the side, spotting a familiar photo on his bedside. He took it in his hand. The picture was an old picture of his mother and sister, before both had died. His mother was beautiful, her hair was this light shade of hazel and she had these gorgeous carolina blue eyes, just like Kaim's. His thumb scanned over the picture. He eyes then travelled towards his sister. Unlike his mother, his sister had jade eyes, they always looked so happy, full of life. She always had a smile on her face, just like in the picture. She had a short hair cut, her hair being this tyrian purple. _Mother... sister..._

He was interrupted when his door was being knocked. He got up and opened it to see Seth standing there. "Dinner's ready." She smiled. She quickly dashed back downstairs, just to add the finishing touches. Kaim lent against the door, stairing at her disappearing figure, before making his way down, towards the dining room. By the time he had gotten down, the table had already been set. Glass, cutlery, the works. Everyone was already seated, apart from Seth who still seemed to be fiddling in the kitchen. "I'll be out shortly!"

Kaim sat down, Artemis' eyes peered at his son. _There's something bothering him..._ Before he could analyse the situation anymore, Seth marched in with the main dish.

"I present to you, the mystery casserole of Kiria! My mother's invention." It looked extremely appetising, it gave off that aroma of a real homecooked meal, just how they should be, the steam floating off from the top layer. She laid it down in the middle of the table and sat down in the spare seat next to Kaim, she smiled warmly at him. "Well, take as much as ya want. There's plenty." She said to everyone. Cooke and Mack were the first to taste the masterpiece, their faces lit up as the flavours hit their tongues.

"Seth, this is... AWESOME!" Cooke shrilled, Mack nodded, his mouth too full of food to make a comment.

"Well, you're very welcome, both of you." Seth beamed. Artemis' face was picture with his first mouthful.

"This is lovely, Seth. I Haven't eaten a meal like this in years, at least not since Elaina-" Before Artemis could continue, Kaim cut in. "Thank you, father." Seth turned her head towards Kaim, he looked distressed, just slightly. Her eyes filled with curiosity. He soon stood up from his seat, and walked towards the door, before he exited his head turned to Seth.

"Seth, thank you for the meal, but my appetite's not with me today." He said quietly before going up the stairs to his room. Artemis looked down at his meal, Cooke and Mack were also silent.

"Excuse me." Seth stood and walked out of the room, she managed to catch Kaim out of the corner of her eye walking up the stairs. _He's probably headed up to his room... _She dashed up the stairs, hearing the quiet closing of his door. She crept as quietly as possible over to the door and lightly knocked. "Kaim? It's Seth. Is something wrong?"

Kaim was lying on his bed, hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling. When he heard Seth's voice, his head turned towards the door. Seth just stood there, she didn't think he was going to open it. She lent against the door and slid down. _Elaina... that has to have been his mother. _"If you don't wanna talk about it, you don't have to. I'm gonna head back downstairs now, okay?"

She stood up, making her way back down the hallway. She heard the handle, the slight creak of his door and turned. As much as his face as whole remained indiffferent, his eyes told everything. They were filled with sadness, and even the slightest bit of regret. Seth took a step forward towards him, she wasn't whether to take another. He started walking towards her but he didn't stop, he just walked right past her, as if she wasn't there. She turned, he just made his way down the stairs and out the front door.

Seth flinched as she heard the door slam, she meekly made her way downstairs and into the dining room. Atermis and children looked to her for some sort of response. She was going to open her mouth but she didn't really have anything to say that had any relevance to the past event. "I'm going to do some studying, tell me when your done, I'll wash up." She forced a smile upon her lips before hastily leaving the room. As walked through the upstairs hallway, curiousity got the better of her. Kaim's room was empty, she wanted to find some answers. It may not have been her place to invade his privacy, but she wanted to understand him a bit more. She opened the door and crept into the room, "Wow... this room hasn't got thing out of place." His room was immaculate, not a sock or pencil on the ground, nothing at all. Seth could never say that about her room. She decided to stay focused on her mission, "Elaina..." She noticed a picture on his bedside table. She took a seat on his bed, eyeing the picture curiously before taking it in her hands. Her fingers scanned the pictures. "Wel that little boy in the corner is definately Kaim, the expression on his face gives it away. She glanced at the tow over women in the photo, she could say who they were for certain, but she could certainly have a good guess. The more mature looking women must have been his mother, "So, this is Elaina... so, this must be his sister." She never caught her name, but she wouldn't pry. Kaim would tell her when he wanted to. She seemed to subconsciously make herself comfortable on his bed, in fact, comfortable enough that she was slowly dozing off. Her head rested against his pillow, her eyes pushing themselves closed. She tried to fight it, but her fatigue got the better of her and she fell asleep.

Kaim had just spent his time reflecting, on everything. He was in the park across the street, lying down on the grass, staring up at the stars. He may have only been young when he lost his mother, but he had this bond with her, one he couldn't forget. Whenever his father mentioned Elaina, Kaim's jaw would clench and his heart would tighten. It was an uneasy feeling, his sister suffered the same fate as his mother just a few years ago. Perhaps that was why he was such a closed person, getting close people, maybe he thought he would just lose them, like his mother and sister. But why then did he become close to Seth? He asked himself this question, but he couldn't come up with an answer. He let out a long, deep sigh before pushing himself off grass. His hands shoved in his pockets, he feet trailed along the ground as he went back inside. Luckily, he didn't bump into his father, nephew or niece, he hastily made his way upstairs before they could catch him.

He was about retreat to the closure of his room when he noticed the door slightly open. He **never**, repeat **never**, left his door open. He assumed it was Cooke or Mack and was about to raise his voice but as he pushed the door open, no sound came out. He looked at Seth's sleeping figure for a moment before wandering over to the bed. He carefully removed the picture from her grasp and placed it back on the table. He could hear her light breathing, and the light trembling of her body. _She's shivering..._ He pulled up the blanket from the bottom of the bed, gently placing it over her. He didn't want to move her back to her room incase she woke up, he grabbed some spare clothes from his drawers as well as something to sleep in. He took one last glance at her before leaving the room and quietly closing the door. He decided to spend the night in one of the many guest rooms.

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**Yeah, your probably thinking, this is very Kaim/Seth concentrated. I got a little carried away but I would have had to right this at some point so why not make it now. Don't fret, I'll be including everyone in the future chapters.**

**I am also extremely sorry for my long absense, I've been preocupied and pretty much forgot I wrote this story. But your wait is over!!!! Hopefully you've enjoyed this chapter and there should be many more to come!**


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